all purpose flour – Oven Love

Strawberry and Peach Cinnamon Bread (Guest Post)

Natalie — Tue, 13 Aug 2013 05:33:35 +0000

Happy Tuesday! The moving truck is in our driveway today and things are gettin’ real. While I’m busy carrying heavy objects (more likely children than boxes), please enjoy this guest post from Janssen of Everyday Reading. Janssen is a fellow contributor at MPMK and part of a very talented family of bloggers (you can find her sisters here and here). She writes about books, family, recipes, DIY.. she’s a regular renaissance woman. Thanks for visiting, Janssen!

One of my favorite things is a recipe that takes a food on its last leg and turns it into something amazing and delicious.

You know how banana bread rescues bananas from the trash can? This bread does the same for strawberries and peaches. The softer and riper they are, the better.

It’s great for a breakfast or snack, but my favorite is with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. But then, ANYTHING with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream is likely to be my favorite.

Strawberry and Peach Cinnamon Bread

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

60 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

Makes 1 loaf or 3 mini-loaves or 1 dozen muffins

Author: Janssen Bradshaw

Recipe type: Bread, Baked Goods

Serves: 8-12

Ingredients

1½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon
2 eggs
⅓ cup plain yogurt
⅓ cup oil
1 cup chopped and mashed strawberries and peaches (whatever ratio you have is fine – I usually pulse mine in the blender a couple of times to chop them).

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Whisk together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients and stir until just combined.
Pour into greased pan (fill each pan or muffin tin about ⅔ full).
Bake for 1 hour if doing a full loaf, 40 minutes for mini-loaves, and 30 minutes for muffins (or until a toothpick comes out cleanly).

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Natalie — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:12:00 +0000

I love posts that have the labels “chocolate” and “vegetables” together. Sometimes it seems my main goal in life is figuring out how to fit chocolate into every meal.

Still working on it.

Chocolate-covered broccoli probably wouldn’t go over well with my crew. Or would it..

Back to reality!

I made this cake last night because

a) we had nothing sweet in the house to consume (????)

b) we have a fridge bursting with garden produce

c) I need chocolate to survive.

I really want to say this cake is healthy, but it would be more accurate to say it is healthier than most cakes. It has lots of ingredients I deem healthy (zucchini, olive oil, greek yogurt, whole wheat flour), but also a few of the usual suspects like sugar and chocolate chips and butter (which I actually think is not so bad if you get it from a good source- we need good fats, people!). If you are feeling like a super-healthy person, I’m sure you could sub out the sugar for another sweetener and switch out anything else you don’t like, but it will probably taste less like cake and more like a chocolate-flavored brick. But, by all means- eat, drink and make chocolate bricks if that’s your thing.

I’m going to be real and tell you the reason I didn’t photograph the full cake is because I cut two giant slices for the hubs and I to eat not more than 10 minutes after it was out of the oven. Hot chocolate cake with smooth chocolate ganache running down the sides is like a big chocolate party in your mouth. For research purposes only (ahem), I tried it at room temperature today- it was still tasty, but I could tell it was losing a little moisture (due to all that healthiness inside). This can surely be remedied with another batch of ganache. Or some ice cream. Or a giant glass of cold, cold milk.

Raise a glass of raw milk and get your forks. Here’s to your health!

(Recipe adapted from Buttered Up.)

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

50 mins

Total time

1 hour 10 mins

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter, softened
½ cup olive oil
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
½ cup yogurt (I use greek)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1¼ cup whole wheat flour
¾ cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons espresso powder (optional)
2 cups shredded zucchini
½ cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
½ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cake pan (I used a 10-inch round springform pan because there’s a lot of batter) with butter and flour or baking spray.
Cream the butter, oil, sugars, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder and salt together until well-combined. Beat the eggs in one at a time. Add half of the flour, stir; add the yogurt, stir; and add the rest of the flour, cocoa powder and espresso powder (if using) and stir again. Add the zucchini and chocolate chips and stir to combine. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 35-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Meanwhile, place the chocolate into a small bowl. Heat the heavy cream, sugar and water until warm (not boiling) and pour it over the chocolate. Stir to combine. Let sit until thickened.
When you’re ready to serve, you can pour the chocolate sauce over the whole cake or on individual sliced. You can serve hot or at room temperature, but it is best enjoyed in the first day or two of baking.

Chelsea’s Lemon Souffle Pancakes

Natalie — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 09:00:00 +0000

Today, you get to meet Chelsea from Chelsea’s Culinary Indulgence. She is a 20-something, self-taught cook just like me and I know you’ll enjoy her recipe. I can’t wait to whip up a plate of these myself. Thanks for sharing, Chelsea!

Hello Oven Lovers! I’m Chelsea, the girl behind the blog Chelsea’s Culinary Indulgence. I’m so excited to be guest posting for Natalie on one of my favorite blogs- Oven Love!

Seeing as how there are always so many amazing breakfast and brunch recipes on Oven Love, I thought what better recipe to guest post about than just that! After a great debate, I decided on these lemon soufflé pancakes. Just the idea of a soufflé pancake was enough to entice me, but with the addition of lemons I was sold! These fluffy soufflé pancakes are just bursting with lemon flavor. Drizzle with some agave nectar and a sprinkle of powdered sugar and its breakfast time! If you don’t have agave nectar, you can use regular syrup, but I find that the agave’s natural sweetness enhances the lemon flavor without overpowering.

4.5 from 2 reviews

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

40 mins

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
¾ cup milk
¼ cup butter, melted
3 egg whites
Agave nectar and powdered sugar to garnish

Instructions

In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, lemon peel, and salt.
Make a well in the center of flour mixture and set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the egg yolk, milk, and the ¼ cup melted butter.
Add egg yolk mixture all at once to flour mixture.
Stir just until moistened.
In a medium mixing bowl beat egg whites with an electric mixer on medium speed until stiff peaks form (tips will stand straight up).
Gently fold egg whites into batter.
Do not overmix.
Pour ¼ cup of the batter onto a hot lightly greased griddle.
Cook over medium heat about 2 minutes on each side until pancakes are golden brown.
Serve with agave nectar and powdered sugar.

Cream Puff Cupcakes [My 500th Post!]

Natalie — Tue, 29 May 2012 17:29:00 +0000

FIVE HUNDRED posts. Wow.

That is a lot of food, people! I am amazed that the little food blog I started on a whim in September of 2008 has survived (and thrived!) until today.

There’s been a little bit of everything here on Oven Love, hasn’t there? Lots of sweet desserts, tons of breakfast and brunch recipes, a fair amount of Dorie Greenspan recipes (thanks to TWD), some vegetables every once in a while, a rainbow cake, some lessons in freezer cooking, and everything in between. I can’t believe I’ve filled 500 posts with my culinary ramblings.

To celebrate, I thought I’d take you back to my roots with some help from Dorie. I came up with the idea for these cream puff cupcakes after randomly seeing Meg’s post and I knew I could count on Dorie’s recipes to guide me through transforming the classic cream puff into a cupcake.

Please understand that this is not a recipe that you can whip up in a few hours. This one takes time and planning. This one should be reserved for special occasions and special people. This one should be savored and enjoyed until the last bit of ganache is licked off the wrapper.

First, you’ll prepare the cream puffs. Or you’ll skip that part and buy them at the store. Then, you’ll bake the cupcakes, fill them with pastry cream, cover them with gorgeous, dripping ganache and top them with a cream puff. Be sure to sit back and enjoy your beautiful creation before diving mouth-first into this indulgence. You WILL be full after eating this cupcake, but I make no promises about keeping yourself from eating another one.

I have so loved this blog and the joy that comes with sharing my recipes with the world. This 500th post is just a milestone on the way to greater things. There is so much more in store for Oven Love- and you will get to hear all about it soon enough. Thank you for always visiting, putting me in your reader, pinning my posts, sharing Oven Love with friends, and for all of your encouraging and thoughtful comments over the years. I really do cherish this little blog and all the eyes that fall upon it. Here’s to 500 more!

Buckle your seat belts- there are a lot of recipes below.

Chocolate Ganache Glaze

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

Author: Dorie Greenspan (Baking from My Home to Yours)

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

4 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
½ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water

Instructions

Put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl.
Bring the cream, sugar and water to a full boil, then pour the liquid over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds. Working with a whisk or rubber spatula, gently stir the chocolate and cream together in small circles, starting at the center of the bowl and working your way out in increasingly larger concentric circles.
If you are pouring the glaze over a chilled cake or cupcakes that is already frosted, the glaze can be used soon after it is blended. If you are pouring it over a room temperature cake or cupcakes, leave the glaze on the counter until it thickens just enough to pour in a ribbon.

Vanilla Pastry Cream

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

1 hour 10 mins

Total time

1 hour 20 mins

Author: Dorie Greenspan (Around My French Table)

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

2 cups whole milk
6 large egg yolks
½ cup sugar
⅓ cup cornstarch
1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3½ tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits, at room temperature

Instructions

Bring the milk to a boil in a small saucepan.
Meanwhile, in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the yolks together with the sugar and cornstarch until thick and well blended. Whisking without stop, drizzle in about ¼ cup of the hot milk- this will temper, or warm, the yolks- then, still whisking, add the remainder of the milk in a steady stream. Put the pan over medium heat and, whisking vigorously, constantly and thoroughly (make sure to get into the edges of the pan), bring the mixture to a boil. Keep at a boil- still whisking- for 1-2 minutes, then pull the pan from the heat.
Whisk in the vanilla extract. Let stand for 5 minutes, then whisk in the bits of butter, stirring until the butter is fully incorporated and the pastry cream is smooth and silky. Scrape the cream into a bowl. You can press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the custard to create an airtight seal and refrigerate the pastry cream until cold (at least an hour).

Cream Puff Dough (Pate Choux)

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

45 mins

Author: Dorie Greenspan (Around My French Table)

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

½ cup whole milk
½ cup water
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs at room temperature

Instructions

Bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil in a heavy-bottomed 2-quart saucepan. When the mixture is boiling rapidly, add the flour all at once, reduce the heat to medium and, without a second’s hesitation, start stirring the mixture like mad with a wooden spoon. The dough will come together very quickly and a slight crust will form on the bottom of the pan, but you have to keep stirring – vigorously – another 2 to 3 minutes to dry the dough. At the end of this time, the dough will be very smooth.
Turn the dough into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or, if you’ve still got some elbow grease left, you can continue by hand. One by one, add the eggs to the dough, beating until each egg is thoroughly incorporated. Don’t be discouraged – as soon as you add the first egg, your lovely dough will separate. Keep working and by the time you add the third egg it will start coming together again. When all the eggs are incorporated, the dough will be thick and shiny and, when you lift some of it up it will fall back into the bowl in a ribbon. The dough will still be warm – it’s supposed to be – and now is the time to use it. ]
Using about 1 tablespoon of dough for each puff, drop the dough from the spoon onto the lined baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches of space between each mound of dough.
Slide the baking sheets into the oven, bake for 15 minutes, then rotate the sheets from top to bottom and front to back. Continue baking until the puffs are golden and firm, another 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the cream puffs to a cooling rack.
When the puffs are cool, use a pastry bag with a small tip to poke a hole into each cream puff and fill them with Vanilla Pastry Cream (see recipe below). Store in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to eat.

Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

45 mins

makes 15 cups (enough to frost and fill approximately three 8″round cakes) This is more than enough for the cream puff cupcakes. The buttercream freezes well, so you can make the extra and save it for later.

Author: Sweetapolita

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

16 large egg whites (30g each–total 450g, or 2 cups)
4 cups granulated sugar (800g)
5 cups (2.5 lbs, 10 sticks) of unsalted butter, softened but cool, cut into cubes
30 ml (2 tablespoons) pure vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt

Instructions

Wipe the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk attachment, small bowl, and whisk with paper towel and lemon juice (or vinegar), to remove any trace of grease. Add egg whites and sugar, and simmer over a pot of water (not boiling), whisking constantly but gently, until temperature reaches 140 degrees F, or if you don’t have a candy thermometer, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the egg whites are hot (you can feel a drop in between your fingers to ensure no granules.).
Take off of stove, and place bowl back on electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, begin to whip until the mixture is thick, glossy, and neutral (you can feel outside of the bowl to test temperature).
Switch over to paddle attachment and, while mixing on low speed continously, add butter one cube at a time until incorporated, and mix until it has reached a silky smooth texture (if curdles, keep mixing and it will come back to smooth).
Add vanilla and salt, mix well. If buttercream is too runny, the butter was possibly too soft–place into the refrigerator for about 15 minutes, then beat again. If still too runny, add a few more cubes of butter and keep beating until it reaches Use immediately, or refrigerate/freeze.

Vanilla Cupcakes

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

35 mins

Author: Oven Love, slightly adapted from The Cupcake Project

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

1¾ cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar
¼ cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
⅓ cup (75 grams) full-fat sour cream
¼ cup canola oil or vegetable oil (60 ml)
1 tablespoon pure (not imitation) vanilla extract
⅔ cup (160 ml) whole milk

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the sugar and mix until well combined.
Add butter and mix on medium-low speed for three minutes. Because there is so little butter, you’ll end up with a very fine crumb texture.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined.
Slowly add milk and mix on low speed until just combined. The batter will be liquid. (Don’t worry, you didn’t do anything wrong. It’s supposed to be that way.)
Fill cupcake liners just over ½ full.
Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it. The cupcakes should appear white with specks of vanilla bean. They should not turn a golden brown. If they are not done, test again in two minutes. If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don’t own a cooling rack) to cool.

Cream Puff Cupcakes

Disclaimer: this is going to take a while. There are a lot of components. If you plan to make the cream puffs from scratch, I would do those first before you start the cupcakes. You can make the cream puffs ahead and refrigerate or freeze them until you’re ready to use them.

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 16

Ingredients

1 batch Vanilla Cupcakes, baked and cooled
1 cup Vanilla Pastry Cream (in addition to the pastry cream used to fill the cream puffs, if you are making them from scratch)
1 batch Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream
2 batches Chocolate Ganache Glaze, cooled slightly (2 batches is an estimate, you made need more/less)
16 Cream Puffs (purchased or made with the Cream Puff Dough and Pastry Cream below)
powdered sugar, for dusting

Instructions

Use a small, serrated knife to cut a round hole into the top of your cupcake. Remove cake from the hole with a spoon.
Fill the cupcake with pastry cream. You can do this with a spoon or with a pastry bag.
Pipe the buttercream in a circular motion on top of the cupcake, covering the pastry cream filling. Let set in the refrigerator until frosting seems firm.
Remove the cupcakes from the fridge. Using a spoon, drip the ganache on top of the cold buttercream and top with a cream puff. Let cool in the fridge until set. These cupcakes are best enjoyed at room temperature, so if you are storing them in the refrigerator, allow them to come to room temperature before you serve them. Add a dusting of powdered sugar and enjoy.

Chocolate Snickerdoodles

Natalie — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:43:00 +0000

I love playing hostess. One of my favorite things to do is to make a meal and enjoy it with friends and family. Usually, I end up going a little overboard as the host- I start to feel like dinner isn’t enough on its own, and then I start making drinks and desserts and bread. I start looking for quick recipes that I can throw together with pantry items to share with my guests.

These cookies appeared this weekend when we had some guests stop by for dinner. If you keep your pantry stocked with the baking basics- flour, sugar, butter, chocolate, etc- these will come together in a flash. Even faster if your butter is already at room temperature!

When these cookies first came out of the oven, they were crisp; but after a day resting in a container, they got a little softer. I liked them both ways with a big glass of milk. If you want to make sure they are a chewier, bake them for 8-10 minutes instead of 12-14. If you are looking for a really chewy cookie with similar flavors, try these Nutella chocolate chip cookies (they look a lot alike but taste different, trust me).

If you aren’t sold on the cinnamon (they are snickerdoodles, after all), you can roll these in plain sugar. I am a big cinnamon fan, though- I think next time I’ll add cinnamon to the cookie batter as well.

Next time you’re playing hostess on short notice, you can look to this recipe for help. Your guests will thank you!

Chocolate Snickerdoodles

Author: Food and Wine (Grace Parisi)

Recipe type: Dessert

Ingredients

1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1½ cups sugar
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
1 large egg
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°. In a bowl, sift the flour with the baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter with 1 cup of the sugar until creamy. Add the melted chocolate and the egg and beat until smooth. Beat in the dry ingredients until incorporated.
In a shallow bowl, mix the remaining ½ cup of sugar with the cinnamon. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and roll in the cinnamon sugar. Transfer to 3 parchment paper–lined baking sheets and flatten to 2-inch rounds. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until the cookies are puffed and cracked. Transfer to racks and let cool.

My Favorite Baked Chicken Nuggets

Natalie — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 11:28:00 +0000

You know you’re a mom when not only do you a) have a favorite chicken nugget recipe, but b) you have a favorite baked chicken nugget recipe. What’s that you see in my driveway? A minivan? Someone save me before I buy any mom jeans!

Just kidding! I love motherhood. Wouldn’t trade it. My house is often filled with little ones, and chicken is usually something you can bet at least half of them will like. (Coincidentally, my toddler decided to boycott chicken the last time I made these.) I think most moms would say they prefer baked recipes instead of fried ones, even though usually the fried stuff tastes so much better (check out this CFA knock-off recipe, it looks amazing). But behold, a tasty baked chicken nugget recipe!

This is my go-to chicken nugget recipe for play dates, parties, snack time and easy dinners. If you keep Panko breadcrumbs on hand, you probably have everything you need to make these in a pinch. If I’m serving them for a group, I like to provide ketchup, honey, barbecue sauce and honey mustard for dipping. Kids (and most adults, right?) love dipping sauces, so they’re a must to have on hand.

Finally, a kid-friendly nugget recipe you can feel good about.

Now excuse me while I go adhere a family of stick figures to the back of my van.

(Just a joke! Love to all the mamas out there with van decals.)

My Favorite Baked Chicken Nuggets

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

50 mins

adapted from Martha Stewart- http://www.marthastewart.com/318646/panko-crusted-chicken-bites-with-apricot

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Nonstick cooking spray
½ cup flour (you can use all-purpose, whole wheat, all purpose, etc)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon smoked paprika (use regular paprika or cayenne pepper as a substitute)
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
2 large eggs
1½ cups panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 large boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 2 pounds), cut into 1-inch cubes

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and fit with a wire rack. Spray with cooking spray; set aside.
Place flour, garlic powder and smoked paprika in a large bowl and season very generously with salt and pepper. Whisk eggs in another large bowl with 2 tablespoons water until well combined. Place the breadcrumbs in a third large bowl, and drizzle with olive oil; toss to coat. Stir in cheese and cayenne and mix well.
Place chicken pieces in the seasoned flour and toss to coat. Working in 3 batches, shake off any excess flour from chicken pieces and transfer to egg mixture; stir to combine. Transfer coated chicken pieces with a slotted spoon to the breadcrumb mixture and toss until completely coated. Place the breaded chicken pieces on a rack-lined baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. Repeat process until all the chicken is breaded. Bake until golden brown and chicken is cooked through, 18 to 20 minutes.

Chocolate Beet Cake

Natalie — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 13:37:00 +0000

Recently, I’ve been getting into baking full-size cakes. It seems like there are never enough occasions that call for a big, beautiful cake. After having my cupcake business in Ohio, I am much more inclined to bake cakes than cupcakes now (like the rainbow cake and the strawberry cake).

Since I was experimenting with beets last week (see my sweet beet pancakes), I wanted to try out Joy the Baker‘s beet cake recipe that I’d been eyeing for a while. The recipe is similar to a basic chocolate cake with the addition of grated beets into the batter and the frosting- not too much extra effort to try something new and different.

As the beets were in the oven, I was getting a little nervous- my house was smelling like roasted dirt. But apparently, that’s normal when you’re dealing with beets. Smells were deceiving in this case- the cake certainly does not taste like dirt. Each chocolate-filled bite is strangely light and dense at the same time. You’ll have to bake it to see what I mean.

I served this cake to guests and didn’t reveal the secret ingredient until after. Everyone seemed pleasantly surprised.. or maybe just relieved that it wasn’t something worse than beets.

Chocolate Beet Cake

Prep time

1 hour 30 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

2 hours 15 mins

http://joythebaker.com/2012/01/chocolate-beet-cake-with-beet-cream-cheese-frosting/

Author: Joy the Baker

Serves: 10

Ingredients

For the Cake: 2 medium beets, unpeeled but trimmed of their greens
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
6 ounces (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pans
1 cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pans
⅔ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1¼ cups buttermilk
For the Frosting: 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces (1 brick) cream cheese, softened
4 to 5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons finely grated beets, mashed with a fork
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or scrapings of one vanilla bean pod
1-2 teaspoons milk, depending on desired consistency
½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
pinch of salt

Instructions

Place a rack in the center and upper third of the oven. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Thoroughly wash beets under running water, and trim their leaves, leaving about ½ inch of stem. Place clean beets in a piece of foil. Drizzle with just a bit of vegetable oil. Seal up foil. Place on a baking sheet in the oven. Roast until beets are tender when pierced with a knife, about 1 hour.
Remove the beets from the oven. Open the foil and allow beets to cool completely. Beets will be easy to peel (just using a paring knife) once completely cooled.
Using a box grater, grate the peeled beets on the finest grating plane. Measure ¾ cup of grated beets for the cake and 2 tablespoons for the frosting. Set aside.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Use butter to grease two 8 or 9-inch round baking pans. Trace a piece of parchment paper so it is the same size as the bottom of the cake pan. Cut it out and place inside the cake pan. Butter the parchment paper. Add a dusting of flour to coat the pan. Set pans aside while you prepare the cake.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars. Beat on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, for one minute after each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Once eggs are incorporated, beat in beets and vanilla extract until thoroughly combined.In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter and egg mixture. Beating on low speed , slowly add the buttermilk. Once just incorporated, add the other half of the dry ingredients. Beat on medium speed until milk and dry ingredients are just incorporated. Try not to overmix the batter. Bowl can be removed from the mixer and mixture folded with a spatula to finish incorporating ingredients. Cake batter will be on the thick side… not pourable.
Divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans. Bake for 23 to 25 minutes (for a 9-inch pan) or 30-32 minutes (for an 8-inch pan). Cake is done when a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cakes from the oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting and assembling the cake.
To make the Frosting: In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese for 30 seconds, until pliable and smooth. Add the butter and beat for another 30 seconds, until well combined. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl as necessary. Beat in the beets. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, milk, lemon juice, and salt. Beat on medium speed until smooth and silky. Refrigerate the frosting for 30 minutes before frosting the cooled cakes.
To assemble the cake, place one layer of cake on a cake stand or cake plate. Top with a generous amount of pink frosting. Spread evenly. Place the other cake on top of the frosting. Top with frosting. Work frosting onto the sides of the cake. You will have extra frosting left over. Refrigerate for an hour before serving (it will make the cake easier to slice). Cake will last, well wrapped in the refrigerator, for up to 4 days.

Sweet Beet Pancakes

Natalie — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 14:23:00 +0000

Oh, how the times have changed.

If you told me five years ago that I’d be recommending that you eat beets in any form, I would have laughed in your face. But here I am, about to tell you why you need to make beet pancakes- and soon.

This weekend, I had my first experience cooking with beets. Hubs brought home four beets for me from our farmer (Hilton) and I knew it was time to experiment. Is it weird that I am not ready to eat a plain roasted beet, and that I’d rather put it in a pancake first? Weird or not, that’s what I did. I roasted those babies up, trimmed and pureed them (all with GLOVED hands, which I highly recommend unless you want stained beet fingers), and mixed them up into my batter.

The verdict? Sweet and delicious. Hubs thought they could use a little extra syrup, but I didn’t think the earthiness of the beets came on too strong. The little guy enjoyed them, too (that means he actually took a few bites and didn’t run the other way asking for M-I-L-K).

If you’re new to beets, too, I would encourage you to start with this recipe. It’s a fairly safe introduction into the world of beets. Some day soon, I hope to face my fears and actually eat a beet on its own.. but until then, I’ll be sitting down to a plate of these sweet, pink cakes.

P.S. Like most pancake recipes, these are freezable!

Sweet Beet Pancakes

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

adapted from Weelicious- http://weelicious.com/2011/06/28/red-beet-pancakes/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=red-beet-pancakes

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Breakfast

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 Cup All Purpose Flour
¾ Cup Whole Wheat Flour
3 Tbsp Light Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
½ Tsp Kosher Salt
2 Medium Beets, roasted & pureed (about ¾ Cups)
1¼ Cup Milk
⅓ Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1 Large Egg
3 Tbsp Melted butter or coconut oil
1 Tsp Vanilla extract

Instructions

Sift the first 5 ingredients into a bowl.
Place the rest of the wet ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk thoroughly to combine.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet and stir until just combined (you don’t want to overstir the batter — some lumps are good).
Drop about 2 tbsp of the pancake mixture onto a greased griddle or pan over medium heat and cook for 3 minutes on each side.
Serve with desired accompaniments- butter, syrup, honey or jam.
To freeze: Place the pancakes in labeled zipper bags and freeze for up to 3 months.

Coconut Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Natalie — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 02:15:00 +0000

Lesson learned so far in life with two babies: sometimes you will just need to make cookies.

In some ways, parenting two has been easier than I thought. I bounced back from the birth easier, I am actually able to get us all out of the house in a decent amount of time, I can manage them both by myself. Some days I think I’m doing pretty great at this mom thing. Other days, when one is screaming, then the other is screaming, then they’re both screaming.. well, cookies happen.

These cookies have been on my list to try for a long time. They didn’t turn out quite like Joy’s, but I like the changes I made and they sure are addicting. I love the addition of coconut to a basic chocolate chip cookie, but the browned butter and coconut oil mixture takes this one over the top. My cookies didn’t spread much, so I like to think of them as little nuggets of deliciousness (see recipe below for my thoughts on that).

So the next time you’re having one of those days with all the screaming, make these cookies after things quiet down. They’ll help you forget all about it.

Coconut Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Prep time

45 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

1 hour 5 mins

adapted for Joy The Baker- http://joythebaker.com/2011/04/brown-butter-toasted-coconut-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 24

Ingredients

¼ cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1 stick unsalted butter
4 oz coconut oil
1 cup granulated sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat or white whole wheat flour
1½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine grain salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

Place a rack in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. On one baking sheet, spread out shredded coconut. Toast coconut for 4-6 minutes, until browned and fragrant. Sweetened coconut will brown faster, so watch it carefully. Remove from the oven, place in a small bowl and let cool.
Melt butter and coconut oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. The butter will begin to foam and crackle. That’s a great sign. That means that the water is evaporating from the butter. Once the crackling subsides, keep an eye on the butter. The butter solids will begin to brown. You’ll smell the butter as it browns. Once well browned, immediately remove the butter from the flame and place in a small bowl. Removing the butter from the pan will ensure that it doesn’t continue to cook and burn in the hot pan. Allow the butter to cool for a few moments.
**Joy suggests using ¾ cup of the melted butter mixture- I got closer to 1 cup but used the ¾ cup and my dough was a little drier than I’d like, so I would suggest trying the full amount. I think this is why the cookies didn’t spread much.**
In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, measure granulated and brown sugar. Add the brown butter mixture and beat together, on medium speed, for about 2 minutes. The sugar may still look grainy. That’s ok.
Add the egg and egg yolk and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. The mixture should become silky smooth. Add vanilla extract and beat.
With mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients. Beat until just incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a spatula to fold in the toasted coconut and chocolate chips. Dough will be thick.
Cookies can be baked immediately, or the dough can be left in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
Spoon balls by the tablespoonful onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until golden brown but still slightly soft in the center. Remove from the oven. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes, before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sprinkled Chocolate Thumbrint Cookies

Natalie — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 14:31:00 +0000

Good morning, all! How are your holiday sugar hangovers?

Today I’ve got some more sugary treats for you in honor of the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, hosted by the fabulously talented Lindsay of Love and Olive Oil and Julie of The Little Kitchen. I have had the pleasure of meeting these two darlings in real life and I couldn’t say no when I heard they were putting this fun swap together.

After some deliberation, I started my search for a great thumbprint cookie recipe, hoping to replicate my favorite sprinkled Christmas cookies from the Oakmont Bakery in Oakmont, PA. My 8-month-pregnant self will unfortunately not be traveling back to PA this Christmas, so I needed a good substitute anyways (wouldn’t want to send myself into a nostalgic/hormonal tailspin).

Once I found my base recipe, I then decided that I would use said recipe for another cookie exchange and a weekend get-together. I ended up making at least 10-12 dozen of these little guys within a week’s time. Needless to say, I will be finding tiny sprinkles all over my kitchen for at least the next year.

And let me just say that I will never again participate in two cookie exchanges at one time. One is more than enough. I have dozens upon dozens of cookies on my counter just staring at me, begging to be eaten, talking to me in my sleep (not that I’m actually getting any), making my toddler crazy (since they are just out of his reach) and giving me tummy aches. The cookies I received from my blogger matches were very yummy, though. I got New Orleans Praline Disks from Of Cabbages and King Cakes, Candy Cane Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt from Bonnie the Baker and Peppermint Sables from Daily Nibbles. My little sprinkled cookies were sent off to The Cookie Monster, Food Victorian, and Sorelle e Cibo.

And while I’m being chatty, can I say that sprinkled cookies are a pain to photograph? Especially with the dark chocolate spot in the middle. These two pictures are all I could salvage from a ton of photos. I’d love any tips if you’ve got them!

Hope you give these cookies a try this Christmas. They’re simple enough to make in large batches (trust me), but special enough to stand out on your cookie tray. Thanks again to Julie and Lindsay for putting this event together!

Sprinkled Chocolate Thumbrint Cookies

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

30 mins

basic recipe via Technicolor Kitchen- http://technicolorkitcheninenglish.blogspot.com/2009/07/chocolate-thumbprints.html

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 24

Ingredients

For the cookie dough: ½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup (70g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups (175g) all-purpose flour, sifted
For the decoration and chocolate filling: Sprinkles, nonpareils or sanding sugar of your choice for decoration
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, room temperature
56g (2oz) semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon light corn syrup

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF; line two baking sheets with baking paper or silicone baking mats.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Beat in flour, beginning on low speed and increasing to medium high, until a dough forms – it won’t be sticky.
Roll dough into balls. Dip each ball into your sprinkles or other decoration, making sure to get even coverage all around. Place onto prepared sheets. (At this point, you can make a pre-thumbprint to be sure your holes are deep enough, or you can wait to do it after the next step). Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven, and press thumb into tops of cookies to make indentations. Return to oven, and bake until light brown on the edges, 7 to 9 minutes more. Remove to a wire rack to cool.
While the cookies are cooling, combine chocolate, butter, and corn syrup in a small heatproof bowl. Microwave at 30 second intervals until melted or set over a pot of simmering water; stirring occasionally until melted and smooth. Allow to cool and thicken slightly. When cookies are cool, fill the thumbprints with the chocolate mixture. Let the chocolate set before serving.